I use a "slide" type paper cutter to cut or score styrene sheet up to .040" and find it gives me good control and nice straight edges without too much difficulty. Much more precise than a knife and ruler. Here's an example of what I am talking about.
Jim
Visit look4trains.com
I don't know if others have mentioned this, but I think just jumping into scratchbuiliding can be a little difficult if you haven't worked much with plastic. I would suggest maybe buying some cheap plastic kits, if you can find some at a train show, and try kitbashing them first. Maybe cutting some walls and modifying things a bit. At the same time, make some new styrene pieces for your project too. Maybe use some sheet styrene to make a small addition, or to make a new roof for your modified kit. Maybe reinforce some joints with strip styrene. Play around a bit and see how things go.
That way you'll be easing into scratchbuilding and not taking too big of a jump in making the whole model from scratch.
I brought up the idea of using a table saw to cut styrene. I did not mean to imply that the OP had to purchase one to work with styrene. I did it to supply what I thought of as an alternative in the general discussion of the matter.
When I started scratchbuilding, I had no power tools. Many years later, I do have them. They are extremely useful for many tasks. If they were not, no one would use them.
Ed
Dave's right: you don't need a workshop full of power tools to do scratchbuilding. With the basics he mentions, you can do all sorts of stuff, and, along the way, you'll learn if you need to expand the options in your toolbox.
I started with an X-Acto knife and a straightedge, and they're still among the most-used in a more well-stocked toolbox.
Wayne
Before you spend a lot of money on power tools, you can scratchbuild without them. I have been scratchbuilding for decades. I made stuff out of balsa, IBM cards and Strathmore board before styrene was commonly available.
Get a #11 hobby knife, a steel ruler, a machinists square (MicroMark sells a thin one that is great for small pieces of styrene), some flat files (6"-9" fine cut), some needle files and some wet dry sandpaper.
That should do the majority of jobs.
I also have a miter box with a razor saw, a chopper and a big sanding block.
I also have dial calipers and a calculator for measuring things.
I have a 3 and a 4 foot aluminum rule that I use for really big structures.
Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com
Get a metal T-Square to make straight lines and keep things square. And why are you using such thin plastic? To me even 0.020 seems too thin for most things. I like to use 0.040 for walls etc. I will use 0.060 for a solid base. And like others have stated, scratch the plastic where you want the cut, then snap it apart.
7j43kJust last week I tried, for the first time, to use my paper cutter to cut styrene. That is EXACTLY how it acted. And I felt, after the cut, that if only the blade had not been beveled, that it would have worked.
I don't believe a bevelled blade would work with the paper cutters because the support table is on one side only. The bevelled blade would push one side of the displaced styrene between the table and the blade and it would jam up real quick. At least that's my theory. The NWSL Choppers use a blade that is bevelled on both sides and they work, at least for shorter cuts.
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
hon30critter UNCLEBUTCH I have heard of using the older style paper cutters, with the long handle blade. Those were great for cutting paper, but cutting thicker styrene with them doesn't work so well. I inherited a Kodak photograph trimmer which was essentially the same thing as the big paper cutters but smaller. It would not cut styrene squarely. I believe the reason is that the blade was bevelled on one side only, just like the bigger cutters. Styrene needs to be able to 'spread' as it is being cut. As the blade cuts into the styrene, the styrene is pushed aside. It is not being removed as it would be with a toothed saw blade. When the blade only has a bevel on one side it pushes the styrene to one side, and the cut will curve because only one side of the cut is moving away from the blade. All the spreading is going to one side only. (Does that explanation make sense?) Anyhow, in my experience, they don't work. Dave
UNCLEBUTCH I have heard of using the older style paper cutters, with the long handle blade.
Those were great for cutting paper, but cutting thicker styrene with them doesn't work so well. I inherited a Kodak photograph trimmer which was essentially the same thing as the big paper cutters but smaller. It would not cut styrene squarely. I believe the reason is that the blade was bevelled on one side only, just like the bigger cutters. Styrene needs to be able to 'spread' as it is being cut. As the blade cuts into the styrene, the styrene is pushed aside. It is not being removed as it would be with a toothed saw blade. When the blade only has a bevel on one side it pushes the styrene to one side, and the cut will curve because only one side of the cut is moving away from the blade. All the spreading is going to one side only. (Does that explanation make sense?) Anyhow, in my experience, they don't work.
Just last week I tried, for the first time, to use my paper cutter to cut styrene. That is EXACTLY how it acted. And I felt, after the cut, that if only the blade had not been beveled, that it would have worked. Maybe.
Back to the table saw, I believe.
BNSF UP and others modelerI finally got into scratchbuilding after reading of its praises. But...didnt expect these problems".
Sorry, we should have warned you. Scratchbuilding is a learning process and by its very nature it is fraught with mistakes and failures. Be prepared to do things over again. The second attempt will be much better.
Clickable link:
https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/modeling-with-styrene-plastic-2382537
Pretty basic information.
Tips for modeling with styrene plastic:
Cutting plastic with a table saw:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQY89-NxLrA
hon30critterDoes that explanation make sense?) Anyhow, in my experience, they don't work.
Perfectly, now I know, thanks
UNCLEBUTCHI have heard of using the older style paper cutters, with the long handle blade.
Get a good hone, and an angle guide, and use them to put a proper double-taper edge on the #11. Then keep the edge touched up; it gets too dull to cut well surprisingly quickly.
I found 'back in the day' that a modification of the automotive modeler's 'hot knife' improved cutting effectiveness, particularly when making repeating cuts or bevels/miters in thick styrene or ABS. The original tool was just a low-wattage soldering iron fitted with the split screw collet to hold the blade; I highly recommend getting one with fine temperature control and then adjusting it to produce the right degree of heat at the edge. Too much heat will physically deform the edge, but you may find it easier to flat-sand this down than to cut and cut and cut and still wind up with bevel pressed into your edge.
BNSF UP and others modelerbeen using a plastic ruler
A very good way to draw blood,,,
I have heard of using the older style paper cutters, with the long handle blade. But I don't know how thick of material
7j43k (I once bought a hand saw with, I think, absolutely no set on the teeth at all. Really. Yikes, that thing would bind REAL SOON. Must have been some sort of specialty saw.)
(I once bought a hand saw with, I think, absolutely no set on the teeth at all. Really. Yikes, that thing would bind REAL SOON. Must have been some sort of specialty saw.)
That was a rip saw and not a crosscut saw. Rip saws are made to cut parallel with the grain, and crosscut saws are made (oddly enough) to cut across the grain.
Robert
LINK to SNSR Blog
hon30critter Ninety degree cross cuts are made with a small square. Odd angles are made with a cork backed steel ruler. Nothing new there, but I always mark the cut lines with a fine tip Sharpie first, even the ones following the grooves. Makes for fewer mistakes. Note that the Sharpie will bleed through your paint if you are using solvent based paints without a primer.
Ninety degree cross cuts are made with a small square. Odd angles are made with a cork backed steel ruler. Nothing new there, but I always mark the cut lines with a fine tip Sharpie first, even the ones following the grooves. Makes for fewer mistakes. Note that the Sharpie will bleed through your paint if you are using solvent based paints without a primer.
If possible, put down a strip of masking tape straddling the line of cut. Burnish it down hard and flat. Mark that with the Sharpie. Then cut through the tape and into the plastic.
Might help.
Choppers generally use a single-edge safety blade to make cuts and the width of the cut is limited to the width of the blade. With that being the case, cuts wider than 1.5" are prohibitive. You'll still need a good ruler to make long cuts in styrene sheeting.
And choppers don't always guarantee a perpendicular cut. The blade can still flex slightly on thicker stock. I've found it requires some minimum filing with thicknesses over 0.05".
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
Scores or slices with knives are an art. Not a difficult art. Some swear a dull knife does a better job. I could buy that for a dollar but argue with it as well.
When cutting stock against a straightedge the angle of your knife blade slightly into the straight edge keeps the cutting edge true.
When scoring sheet goods against a straightedge. One must keep in mind the angle of the knife blade angling into the straight edge must be slight but very important. If a slight angle of the blade is angled towards the straight edge, the cut will always follow true.
I think maybe I should make myself a little chopper with straight square "fences" to butt sheets of styrene against. Then I can just push a little arm down like a paper guillotine to make cuts. I have been using a plastic ruler. Thats probably been part of the problem. This DIY chopper would make things fast, straight, square, and clean. And yes I know there are choppers out there already (Micro Mark) but I would rather spend my money on other things (more styrene).
I'm beginning to realize that Windows 10 and sound decoders have a lot in common. There are so many things you have to change in order to get them to work the way you want.
Ed,
A circular blade shouldn't lift the work at all. The rotation of the spinning blade should force the stock against the surface of the saw's platform, yes?
UNCLEBUTCH 7j43k UncleButch made the suggestion of having the blade project very little above the work. This serves to lengthen the cut distance so that there will be more teeth in the cut. There will be much less chance of tear-out, if any. This is where a band saw can fail, because the cut distance is the shortest possible, rather than the longest. That does sound logical, But what I though I was seeing, is on a 10in blade,too high, the back of the blade was causeing heat, and tended to want to grab the plastic and push it back toward me.And by moveing up would want raise the material off the table, causeing chatter.
7j43k UncleButch made the suggestion of having the blade project very little above the work. This serves to lengthen the cut distance so that there will be more teeth in the cut. There will be much less chance of tear-out, if any. This is where a band saw can fail, because the cut distance is the shortest possible, rather than the longest.
That does sound logical, But what I though I was seeing, is on a 10in blade,too high, the back of the blade was causeing heat, and tended to want to grab the plastic and push it back toward me.And by moveing up would want raise the material off the table, causeing chatter.
The back of the blade shouldn't be touching the plastic, in theory. Sure, the edge of the tooth will touch coming up, just as it touches going down. But if there's heating, I think there's TOO MUCH touching. I think I've see some carbide blades where they leave a lot of the side of the insert to rub against the work. I gotta wonder about using plain steel teeth, where they bend the tooth for the kerf. There really shouldn't be much THERE to rub on the plastic.
And you likely would want a good amount of set.
I use a band saw on plexiglass,somewhat thicker then 060 styrene,with sucess. I believ the narrow blade creates less heat,and no up movement
I use a band saw on plexiglass,somewhat thicker then 060 styrene,with sucess.
I believ the narrow blade creates less heat,and no up movement
Certainly there will be no pull-up with a band saw. I do suspect your band saw doesn't use carbide inserts on the teeth. Perhaps it's working like the blade I talked about above.
The tooling I use when I mill or turn styrene is either high speed steel or solid carbide. No inserts. There's really nothing there to rub on the plastic. I NEVER have melting problems when I work.
I do appreciate your point about the possibility of the circular blade possibly lifting the work. I'll have to keep a watch out for that.
I have a trick for making perfectly straight and perfectly parallel cuts in styrene every time, and with very little effort.
I start with 'V' groove sheets. All you need to do is follow the grooves. As has been said several times, I use very little pressure and make several passes.
I keep a variety of V groove sheets with different spacings and different thicknesses on hand. By selecting a sheet with the appropriate spacing I can get parallel cuts that are within a few .000"s of the width of the piece I need. The grooved side of the piece goes to the inside of the model where it usually can't be seen.
Ninety degree cross cuts are made with a small square. Odd angles are made with a cork backed steel ruler. Nothing new there, but I always mark the cut lines with a fine tip Sharpie first, even the ones following the grooves. Makes for fewer mistakes. Note that the Sharpie will bleed through your paint if you are using solvent based paints without a primer. Since I light most of my structures I paint them black first to stop light leakage so the ink stains don't matter anyways.
I will admit that the edges of the V groove cuts are not quite square. One side of the V still shows. I don't recall that that has ever caused a problem if I am blocking the joints.
I will also mention that I rarely work with .010" sheets. The thin styrene is prone to melting if too much adhesive is applied. I usually work with .040" sheets. If I am using .020" sheets it is usually as a brick or roofing veneer.
7j43kUncleButch made the suggestion of having the blade project very little above the work. This serves to lengthen the cut distance so that there will be more teeth in the cut. There will be much less chance of tear-out, if any. This is where a band saw can fail, because the cut distance is the shortest possible, rather than the longest.
To the OP if your still here ; What are you building with 010 ? kinda thin for anything I do.
I think the main cause of tear-out with plastics is using a blade with too few teeth per inch. There should always be at least two teeth in the cut. If not, the work can lunge forward into the gap between the teeth; and the next tooth takes a big old chomp out. With plastic, that chomp expands in size at the exit point.
UncleButch made the suggestion of having the blade project very little above the work. This serves to lengthen the cut distance so that there will be more teeth in the cut. There will be much less chance of tear-out, if any. This is where a band saw can fail, because the cut distance is the shortest possible, rather than the longest.
7j43k For anyone who thinks it can't work to cut styrene with a table saw, I will say that I've cut it with a miniature chop saw, and I regularly machine it with a mill and a lathe. There have been no problems. Ed
For anyone who thinks it can't work to cut styrene with a table saw, I will say that I've cut it with a miniature chop saw, and I regularly machine it with a mill and a lathe. There have been no problems.
The key to a clean cut is a rigid & secured piece of stock and cutting tool. If either flexes then your cut will be uneven. The suggestion of placing the styrene sheet between two pieces of wood is a good one. This will eliminate tear-out and chatter; two things that plastics are prone to when cutting with a toothed blade.
for thin styrene, don't apply a lot of pressure, all you want to do is mark the styrene on the first pass. A lot of times I don't even use the "blade" of the #11 blade, I turn it over and score (not cut) with the back of the blade . I make several passes. Once the score is cut you don't have to use the straight edge if you are careful.
I wouldn't use a table saw and stuff less than an 1/8" or so, even .060 I cut with a knife. Score and break.
As with Dr. Wayne, I like using my utility knive when ever I can. Fits in my hand much better, and doesn't want to "wonder" as much as the Xacto.
I like the band saw idea, might be harder to keep a straight cut, and I don't have a band saw anyway. Utility knive it is.
Mike.
My You Tube